Newbie here, Questions about stock Sony Sound System '13

[TanK203]

Hey everyone. I just bought a used 2013 SHO back in June. I love the car, but this thing has been a nightmare since I bought it. Basically its the definition of a lemon and was involved in some sort of accident without being disclosed. And yes, the car fax is clean.

I don't want to focus too much on that, but I will say that a LOT of work has been done to fix this car, mostly exterior, but definitely some electrical issues that have since been cleared up.

To that end, I want to see if anyone else thinks the sound system in this car is a bit weak. I find myself needing to crank up the volume to near max on phone calls, and when listening to music, the bass is quite weak. For 12 supposed speakers, I'm not impressed. My 2010 Fusion SE could drop the bass better than this thing can.

Any guidance, suggestions etc would be appreciated.

 

[krewat]

Is it the top of the line Sony Premium (or whatever they call it) ?

If so, my 2013's bass (and my 2016) is pretty powerful, and while not the "greatest" from an audio-phile's point of view, it doesn't need to be maxed out for phone calls, that's for sure. I'm 50+ years old, so my hearing isn't what it used to be, but I can play Korn at around level 20 and it's at the limit of what I consider "too loud".

Sounds like something is not right. What that is, I have no clue

 

[TanK203]

I'm not entirely sure. The car didn't even come with an owner's manual. From what I can tell the car had the performance package (20" wheels, no spare tire). Picture of the sound system attached.

When I start to crank the music, the bass starts to fall out quite significantly. If this system does have "subs", then I suspect it's not using them.

Does anyone have any documentation on the placement of the speakers and amplifiers?

 

[krewat]

Yeah, that's the premium sound system. It has a sub in the rear deck, I believe.

 

[xFallenxCripplex]

It could be possible the speakers are out of phase with each other "reversed"
The quickest way to find out is you should be able to find a audio store that can check the polarity with a device or you can find one for cheap online
But if you really wanted to you could also apply 9v to the speakers and make sure the cone pops

The amp should be in the trunk driver side.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

[TanK203]

That's a very good possibility. I'm 99% sure all four doors were replaced on the car. But I know for a fact at least 3 were replaced.

 

[bpd1151]

I myself wouldn't necessarily call the 6x9's on the rear deck/parcel tray as being "subs" in the true sense.

However, that's what FMC refers to them as, and that's also how they have them wired.

Plenty of threads across multiple forums on this subject matter, as well as plenty of complaints of its lackluster (term used loosely) "performance".

Typically, anything at, or beyond halfway up, on the volume results in the bass signals dropping off dramatically.

Some have found slight improvement by changing the settings from surround, to stereo mode. But I stress, only minimal improvement to the sound field.

Only real way to get more thump in the trunk, is to considering adding additional aftermarket amps and speakers. That's it in a nutshell. Save yourself some time and headache(s) by d!ck!ng around with the factory head unit/amps/speakers.

You'll likely never be happy if you do. Good luck.

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[xFallenxCripplex]

Here is the easy device https://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_94724_NVX-XTGSP2.html?nosto=nosto-product-prod-mobile

They sell a few all you do is play a certain audio it knows how it should sound and will tell you if it's in phase or not

That's a very good possibility. I'm 99% sure all four doors were replaced on the car. But I know for a fact at least 3 were replaced.

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[Lostneye]

The factory plugs can only be connected with the correct polarity unless the harness was cut and spliced or aftermarket speakers were installed.

I find Bluetooth is noticeably lower than having the phone plugged in for phone calls. However I never had an issue where I really could not hear someone under normal conditions.

Personally I found the Sony system to be weak as well considering what it is billed as by Ford. As bpd says stereo definitely sounds better than surround. And yes the factory EQ curve(as a lot of OEM stereos) changes with the volume so bass does roll off as you turn it up. You can either use an Audio Control LC2i to get signal for subs or need an integration piece to bypass the amp if redoing the whole system or try the forscan route to reprogram the deck. I have the PAC amppro.

 

[tech10002]

It all depends on your point of view. Some people think the Sony system sounds awesome. I am not one of them. It can be made to sound decent with better door speakers and deck subs, but to get anything I’d consider sounding good, you have to go full aftermarket amps, speakers, subs, and DSP with some kind of factory integration. The Sony amp only has like 20 watts a channel and you can only do so much with that low power level. If you’re staying with the factory amp, get speakers with as high an efficiency rating as you can find. If you’re going full bore, go with the Amppro. I tried the other solutions first, well except the Forscan line level hack, and they suck.

 

[Lostneye]

I tried the other solutions first, well except the Forscan line level hack, and they suck.

This

I may try forscan at some point. My installer has no idea about it although I'm sure he is capable if we go through it. I'm hoping to make a deal for showing him a work around for a lot of Fords.

 

[SHOinVa]

I have a 2012 that was in very good condition and I also had issue with the stereo, a lot of system require you to turn up the volume to use the phone. As far as the rest of the system I had kind of the same experience, it was like it sounded good until you turned it up then it died and sounded very harsh. A stated before there is a ton of stereo information on here, including some very detailed post by me, Have a great day.
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